Paleo Pumpkin Scones

There is a small list of foods that I crave….like once I get it in my head I can’t stop thinking about it until I eat some. Maybe you have a list like this too? The foods on my list are somewhat random foods, or at least when collected in one place they make an eclectic collection.

*fried green tomatoes

*red velvet cupcakes

*flaky buttery southern-style biscuits

*black cherries

*black beans

*chips and queso dip

*mashed potatoes

-AND-

*Starbucks Pumpkin Spice Scones

Of course the ONLY thing on this list that’s on the Paleo diet is black cherries, so it’s been a little sad to be me lately, as none of my cravings are really quenchable right now. And even sadder….the Starbucks pumpkin scones are a seasonal item, generally ONLY available for a few months in the fall and then a full year of waiting for them to be available once again. Obviously, there will be no Starbucks pumpkin spice scones for this girl this year.

[Educational Note: If you’re wondering why fried green tomatoes, mashed potatoes and black beans aren’t on my diet…….Corn and potatoes are the only outlawed “veggies” on the diet…corn counts as a grain (no grains allowed) and potatoes are so starchy that they are a no-no. Legumes (beans) aren’t allowed because they contain something that prevent nutrient absorption into the intestine….or something like that…and the fried green tomatoes aren’t ok because of the breading (usually cornmeal) on the outside…although I might try making some coated in almond flour and see how it goes! The cupcakes, biscuits and scones all contain grains and the queso is a dairy product. The general rule of Paleo Thumb is: NO grains, dairy, legumes.]

Keith (my awesome husband, for any new readers out there) says that on this diet he misses “variety,” meaning he gets tired of the endless parade of green salads topped with grilled chicken breasts, steamed green veggies, and scrambled eggs which have become the staple of our new eating habits. I actually don’t mind the redundancy of our meals, but I. MISS. BREADS. And black beans. During my first severe bout of “I need to eat bread right now or I’m going to lose my cool,” Keith made some yummy grain-less blueberry pancakes and saved the day. And then on Halloween night, my dear friend Anna and I went to town on my first ever batch of “Paleo Pumpkin Scones.” Not QUITE the Starbucks version, but really, really amazing, and totally satisfying my craving for something bread and pumpkin related. Even non-paleo Anna declared the first one to be tasty, and then asked for seconds a few minutes later. So….if you’re being healthy…but your family and friends aren’t quite on board with your hardcore diet changes….this might be a yummy holiday snack to fix! As usual, I found the recipe on the internet, and then tweaked it a little bit. The original recipe is not mine…but the version you’ll find below is my tweaked version.

Yummy finished product served on one of my grandmother’s tea saucers!

Paleo Pumpkin Scones

Scone Ingredients:

*1 and 1/2 cups almond flour

*1/2 cup coconut flour

*1/3 cup sugar in the raw (or granulated coconut palm sugar)

*2 eggs (we use free-range, organic, local eggs to be humanely responsible)

*1/2 cup canned pumpkin (not puree!)

*1 and 1/2 heaping teaspoons ground cinnamon

*1/2 heaping teaspoon ground nutmeg

*1/4 heaping teaspoon ground ginger

*1/4 heaping teaspoon ground cloves

*1 teaspoon baking soda

*1 teaspoon vanilla extract

*1/4 teaspoon finely ground sea salt (I like to use regular sea salt and grind it myself in a mortar and pestle)

*OPTIONAL: 1/4 cup chopped almonds or walnuts (I did NOT include these)

Glaze Ingredients:

*2 tablespoons almond butter (chunky or smooth to taste) (almond butter is like peanut butter…not butter/margarine….just in case you were confused.)

*1 teaspoon honey (again, we use local honey from a local beekeeper….it helps with allergies!) (you can also substitute pure maple syrup)

*1/2 teaspoon almond milk (or coconut milk)

*1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract

Scone Instructions:

1. Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. I used my Kitchenaid stand mixer so if you have a stand mixer, go for it….but the recipe actually calls for a bowl and handheld mixer, so either way is great. Either way, beat the eggs, sugar and pumpkin together. Then stir in the vanilla extract.

3. In a separate mixing bowl, combine almond and coconut flour, all the spices, the salt and the baking soda.

6. dough should be stiff enough to roll into balls….divide the dough in half and roll into two equal sized balls (about the size of a tennis ball)

7. Cut a piece of parchment paper to fit a cookie sheet and place the two dough balls on the parchment line cookie sheet. Press down into circles about 3/4 to 1 inch thick. I cut each round “cake” into 8 bite-sized triangle-shaped pieces like you would cut a pie or pizza.

8. Separate the triangles and spread them out on the cookie sheet. bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

9. Place scones on a wire cooling rack to cool. Mine were in between the consistency of pumpkin bread and gingerbread….dense and slightly moist and heavy.

Glaze Instructions:

1. I made my glaze while the scones were cooking…..mix the almond butter, honey, almond milk and vanilla extract in a bowl and mix. If it’s too runny, add more almond butter and honey until the mixture is a thick but squeezable frosting-like texture.

2. place mixture in a plastic ziplock bag and snip the corner off to make a “frosting bag.”

3. drizzle over cooling scones!

4. ENJOY!

Recipe notes: This recipe makes 16 bite-size scones….I’d say a serving is 2 bite size scones. Prep time is about 10 minutes with 20 minutes of baking and another 5 minutes of time for glaze prep/frosting. I don’t have nutritional info on this recipe. I’d still eat them sparingly if you’re doing Paleo, but I’d say a serving a day (2 mini scones) for breakfast or a snack would be ok-ish. 🙂 I kept mine in a covered cake plate and they kept well!

You should be able to find almond butter, almond milk, and almond flour in the “healthy” section of your grocery store. You might just have to ask a clerk for directions if you don’t typically venture down that aisle! The only ingredient I had trouble locating (i.e. they did not sell it at Kroger) was the coconut flour. I found it at Whole Foods, and I would think that any other organic or health foods store would carry it as well. However, you might want to make a few phone calls (as I did) before you leave the house so you don’t drive all over town!

7 responses to “Paleo Pumpkin Scones”

haha. you can easily turn that around in a few easy steps….
1) no grains (be careful, most “gluten free” products are made with rice flour, which is still a grain…so gluten free products aren’t sufficient.
2) no dairy. (i still use a little half and half in my coffee and occasionally a little cheese on a salad or in scrambled eggs, but I’ve found that milk and ice cream now make me really sick…thinking they have long been a source of my sore stomachs, and that I’m apparently lactose intolerant.
3) no legumes….sorry ’bout cha black beans, baked beans, green beans, pinto beans………
4) no overly salty, fatty, starchy or artificially sugared items…..

maybe I should post a list of things you CAN eat…..haha.

Did I mention I was 128.4 on the scale this morning? Down from 142? That’s 13.6 pounds lost in 11 months. Does that sway you any? haha.

Ooooh! Comments! I think Bethany is otherwise detained this weekend so you get a response from me instead. And I am only approx 20% paleo, by which I mean, totally unqualified to discuss this. But I *think* some people consider themselves paleo-compliant when consuming small amounts of coconut sugar. And I bet you two don’t consider those people to be authentic at all. 🙂